


Wrong Turn

by sowell



Category: Naruto
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-26
Updated: 2013-05-26
Packaged: 2017-12-13 01:34:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/818406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sowell/pseuds/sowell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Naruto and Sasuke have an interlude in the desert. Nothing changes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wrong Turn

**Author's Note:**

> Written for izzyisozaki for the 2010 sn_exchange on livejournal.

That's it, Naruto thought. He was never accepting another mission to Suna. His clothes were soaked through with sweat, he had less than a swallow of water left, and to top it all off, he was lost. Gaara had offered him a map on the way out, but Naruto had cheerfully refused, confident of his ability to find his way back home. Now he was lost, sweltering, dehydrated, and irritated.  
  
He leaned down to shake the sand out of his shoes, only to burn the soles of his feet the instant they touched the ground. Fuming, he gave up.  
  
The closest thing to shelter that he could find was a small alcove carved out of the side of a sandstone cliff. The sharp edges told him it was man-made, not desert-worn. He felt cautiously along the inside of the stone, kunai poised to ward off traps. All he came up with was cobwebs and a snake's tail disappearing into the cracks.  
  
Sighing in resignation, he leaned back against the stone to wait out the worst of the sun.  
  
*****  
  
He wasn't sure what woke him. He reached for the weapon by his head, skin prickling madly. The sun had almost set, except for the tiniest sliver still lingering over the horizon. It was in the deepening shadow of twilight that he saw it: someone was walking toward him.  
  
Well, staggering was more like it. He tensed as the figure dropped to its knees, then pushed itself back up. Naruto crouched lower.  
  
It wasn't until the person was within a hundred feet that he realized it was Sasuke, or what appeared to be Sasuke, stumbling toward him. He swallowed and gripped his weapon tighter. It could be a trap. Every shinobi east of Suna knew that Naruto Uzumaki was looking for Sasuke Uchiha; an injured Sasuke was difficult bait to ignore.  
  
Or it could be his own imagination and the desert heat, playing tricks on him. It wouldn't be the first time he'd seen Sasuke in his mind's eye in the last three years.  
  
But the approaching figure didn't look like a mirage. Naruto could see blood now, lashed across Sasuke's white shirt. Sasuke's left arm hung at a strange angle.  
  
Slowly, so as not to get a face full of chidori, Naruto stepped out of the shadows of his small shelter. “Sasuke,” he said levelly. “What are you doing here?”  
  
Sasuke's eyes rose to meet his, black and glazed. “Naruto,” he said, and then he smiled.  
  
Naruto saw him start to pitch forward, and he couldn't help himself. Sasuke landed heavily in his arms, unconscious.  
  
*****  
  
Sasuke slept until the next afternoon. Naruto watched him out of gritty eyes, unsure what would happen if he was asleep when Sasuke finally woke. He was still and expressionless, his bare chest rising and falling evenly. Naruto wished he'd talk in his sleep or something. Maybe it would give him some clues as to how the hell Sasuke had ended up in the middle of the desert.   
  
Naruto had searched him from head to toe, but other than a recently dislocated shoulder, he hadn't been able to find any injuries. Naruto wasn't sure whether he was more relieved or sickened that the blood all over Sasuke apparently belonged to someone else. There was a new mark – a swirled black design directly between Sasuke's shoulder blades. It looked like a seal, and Sasuke had flinched in his sleep when Naruto brushed callused fingers over it.  
  
Naruto caught a sizable lizard, broke its neck, and roasted it between the scorching sun and a stone. By the time it was ready to eat, Sasuke was stirring.  
  
“You fainted,” Naruto said. He watched as Sasuke sat up and ran a hand through his dark hair. Such a  _normal_  thing to do.  
  
“Passed out,” Sasuke corrected, glancing around their tiny shelter. Even in the shadows, it was unbearably hot.  
  
“Whatever,” Naruto said. “It was lame.”  
  
Sasuke pushed to his feet, and Naruto saw the way he leaned against the stone wall with his good arm. He didn't seem inclined to talk, so Naruto figured it was his turn again.  
  
“So, uh...what are you doing here? Your crazy friend with the mask isn't coming too, is he? Cause I really hate that guy.”  
  
Sasuke ignored him, feeling along the wall of the cave. The mark on his back stood out in inky relief against his pale skin.  
  
“Nice tattoo,” Naruto tried.  
  
“Be quiet,” Sasuke said. Then, “I need water.”  
  
“Jeez, you're welcome,” Naruto muttered. He tossed his water pouch to Sasuke, who caught it smoothly. Naruto watched as Sasuke proceeded to finish it off in three swallows.  
  
“Great,” Naruto said. “And now we're out of water.”  
  
In response, Sasuke leaned over and put his hands on his knees. The muscles in his stomach jumped, quick and uneven. Naruto saw him start to tilt and made a move to help him, but Sasuke waved him away. Naruto stood, hands clenched into fists.  
  
When Sasuke finally stood straight again, his face was faintly green. Naruto stared.  
  
“What's wrong with you?” he asked around the lump in his throat.  
  
Sasuke smiled again, that same faint, humorless smile he'd given before he collapsed. “I'm dying.”  
  
*****  
  
“Madara is dead,” Sasuke said, leaning his head back against the wall. “I killed him.”  
  
Naruto swallowed, remembering the blood all over Sasuke's shirt. “Me, Itachi, Orochimaru, and now Madara?” Naruto said. “I think you're all out of allies to murder.”  
  
Sasuke's dark gaze turned on him. “I haven't killed you.”  _Yet_  silently echoed at the end of the sentence. Outside, the sun was sinking.  
  
Naruto kept his eyes on the ground, even as he felt his mouth tug up. “That's because I'm not as easy to kill as those other guys.”  
  
“I could have killed you, all those years ago,” Sasuke said.  
  
 _But you didn't_ , Naruto thought.  _Why didn't you_?  
  
Out loud, he said, “So what did Madara do? Make fun of Itachi's hair?”  
  
Sasuke avoided his eyes. “He was going to betray me. So I betrayed him first.”  
  
“Is that some sort of family tradition?” Naruto snapped. His skin burned. He didn't want to think about it, about Sasuke killing with so little provocation, about Sasuke  _existing_  with so little belief.  
  
Sasuke's eyes narrowed. “Why are you upset? He was only planning to come after you and take the Kyuubi.”  
  
“And if he had, I would have stopped him,” Naruto retorted. He remembered his mother's face, a mix of regret and sorrow as she retold her story. Naruto would have given his own life before he let the Kyuubi fall into Madara's hands again.  
  
“You're still a moron,” Sasuke muttered.  
  
“So why are you here?” Naruto shot back. “How come you were wandering around the desert anyway, huh?”  
  
“I was looking for you,” Sasuke answered calmly, and Naruto felt all his anger evaporate. Something new and warm unfurled in his chest. All those years of running after Sasuke, all those years of chasing and failing, only to have Sasuke come to him. In his last days, Sasuke had wanted  _Naruto_ , had decided to find him, to acknowledge him, to ask for forgiveness...  
  
“To kill you,” Sasuke finished, and Naruto's hands balled. “I don't have enough time to destroy Konoha, but I have enough to destroy you.”  
  
He'd accepted it, Naruto realized. Sasuke, who'd never accepted anything in his life without a fight, was resigned. Naruto wanted to pound his fists against the wall.  
  
“You're not dying,” he said roughly. “I don't care what kind of fancy seal Madara put on you. You're not...you can't...” If Sasuke died, that was it. All his promises, all his  _purpose_ , up in smoke. He could never sit in the Hokage's seat, knowing he'd failed.  
  
Sasuke's mouth twitched. “You're the same as always. So sure you can change anything.”  
  
“When Orochimaru deserted,” Naruto said carefully, “Jiraiya gave up. And he hated himself for the rest of his life for that. I won't become that.”  
  
Sasuke gave a short, dry laugh that seemed to rattle in his chest. “You're too worried about me,” he said. “When I don't care about you at all.”  
  
Naruto felt something inside him twist. He ignored it and rose to his feet. “It doesn't matter,” he said. “I have to try. So let me see it.”  
  
*****  
  
“Tsunade can fix it,” Naruto said under his breath. “I  _know_  she can.” The black mark between Sasuke's shoulder blades seemed to glow faintly in the moonlight. Naruto wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but it seemed larger than it had even twenty-four hours ago. The swirls reached out delicately, stretching for Sasuke's skin.  
  
“She can't,” Sasuke said flatly. “She can't remove it without killing me. Madara made that very clear when he put it there.”  
  
“Well if we don't do something it will kill you anyway,” Naruto said, fighting to keep the panic from his voice. Sasuke was hunched forward, spine curving over his knees. Every once in a while, in the stagnant desert heat, he shivered.  
  
“Fight me,” Sasuke said, “and it won't be your problem any more.”  
  
“You're insane,” Naruto argued. “I won't fight you like this. It wouldn't be fair.”  
  
“You said.” Sasuke's voice was muffled against his own skin. “You said you'd take everything on yourself – all my hatred. Are you backing out?”  
  
“ _No_ ,” Naruto bit out. “But I also said we'd die together. If we fight like this, you're the only one who'll die.”  
  
Sasuke shot him a sidelong glance, his dark eyes contemptuous. “I never said I intended to lose.”  
  
“You can barely stand up,” Naruto argued. “How can you - ”  
  
One moment Sasuke was still and docile in front of him, the next he found his cheek slammed against the wall, one of Sasuke's hands tight around his throat.  
  
“Shit,” Naruto wheezed.  
  
“Don't make the mistake of having pity on me,” Sasuke hissed, very close to his face. His hand tightened until Naruto saw stars. “If you won't fight me, I might as well kill you now.”  
  
Naruto jabbed a sharp elbow into Sasuke's stomach, and Sasuke fell back, eyes burning. Naruto rubbed his throat, sucking in air through the pain.  
  
“Fine,” he said, voice raspy. “I get it. I'm going to find water. Get us some food if you can.”  
  
He stumbled out of the shelter, limbs burning with tension, heart pumping with anger.  _Fucking Sasuke_ , he fumed.  _Bastard. Cold, ruthless sonofabitch. Asshole to end all assholes._  
  
The vegetation in the desert was as unwelcoming as any Naruto had seen. It all had prickles. He missed Konoha's soft grass and leafy trees. He tried to remember which type of cactus harbored water that was safe to drink, but all he could recall from Sakura's lesson was the tight t-shirt she'd been wearing that day.  
  
“Damn it,” he mumbled, neatly severing one prickly limb with his kunai. He gazed down into the hollow tube. There was liquid in there for sure, but he wasn't sure if it was the kind that would quench his thirst or the kind that would eat his stomach from the inside out. His throat was so parched that it was sticking together painfully.  
  
Well, at least if he died he wouldn't have to take care of the drama queen any more. He sniffed the plant one more time, grimaced, and tipped his head back.  
  
“I wouldn't if I were you,” a voice said from behind him. “Unless you're interested in being paralyzed for the next week or so.”  
  
Naruto dropped the cactus branch like it was on fire.  
  
Kabuto, or what remained of Kabuto, stood less than ten feet away, watching him. Within seconds, Naruto had three kunai in his hand.  
  
“What do you want?” he asked levelly.  
  
“How's Sasuke-kun?” Kabuto asked. His voice was an strange combination of Kabuto's pleasant tones, underlined with Orochimaru's hiss. The snake had taken over nearly two-thirds of his face, and Naruto felt a shudder ripple up his spine. The last time he'd seen Orochimaru, the sannin had been disappearing with Sasuke. Again.  
  
“You obviously already know,” Naruto said. “So what do you want?”  
  
“Here.” Kabuto held up a full water pouch, and Naruto eyed it warily. “None of the cacti around here have safe drinking water. Take it.” He tossed it on the ground between them, but Naruto made no move to catch it.  
  
“What do you want?” he repeated.  
  
“I can remove the seal that's killing Sasuke,” Kabuto said, eyes clear and calm.  
  
Naruto slammed him to the ground before he could move, kunai against his neck. “Tell me how,” he grit out.  
  
Kabuto made a sound halfway between a cough and a chuckle, spitting out sand. “Even if I told you, it would be useless. You need a skilled medic nin to do it. There are maybe two or three in the world who have the ability.”  
  
“Anything you can do, Tsunade can do,” Naruto growled. “So  _tell me_.”  
  
Kabuto turned his head just enough for Naruto to see his eye twinkling. “Just because she can, it doesn't mean she will. Not all cures are worth the price.”  
  
Naruto jammed the kunai into Kabuto's back, and the clone vanished, just as Naruto thought it would. He looked, and Kabuto was leaning against a nearby rock.  
  
“What do you want from me?” Naruto asked in a low voice.  
  
“Easy,” Kabuto said. “I want the Kyuubi.”  
  
*****  
  
“Here.” Naruto tossed the water pouch at Sasuke's feet, noting that Sasuke had found enough dry wood to make a fire and start cooking some sort of rat. If he didn't get out of here soon, Naruto thought mournfully, he'd die of starvation.  
  
Sasuke was still shirtless, and Naruto watched the way the muscles in his chest flexed as he poked the fire. He tore his eyes away and pulled his own sweaty shirt over his head.  
  
“I'm going to sleep,” he said. “You take first watch. And save me some food.”  
  
His dreams were mixed with nightmares, of the fox's sharp claws, Sasuke's blood drenching his hands, Konoha in ruins. Orochimaru's face flickered through his mind, slithering through it all with a smile on his face, wrapping around Naruto and squeezing until Naruto couldn't breathe, could only reach toward Sasuke's dead face and strain, failure and guilt and horror like a maelstrom inside of him.  
  
“Naruto.” Sasuke's face loomed over him, black brows pulled together. “Wake up.”  
  
Naruto took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. “Damn,” he said hoarsely. “Bad dreams.”  
  
Sasuke's expression didn't change. “It's your turn.”  
  
“Right.” Naruto sat up, rubbing his face. It stung with days of being exposed to wind and sand.  
  
Sasuke laid down in the corner and turned on his side, head resting on Naruto's pack. Naruto looked at the sharp slope of his shoulders and tried to ignore the fact that Sasuke was too thin. The mark on his back touched his sides.  
  
Naruto watched him sleep for a long time, turning over Kabuto's words.  
  
 _You have my word I won't attack Konoha once the fox is in my power,_  he'd said.  _Of course, I can't promise the same for Sasuke-kun_.  
  
He thought of Sasuke, inches away from killing Sakura, of the total madness he'd seen in his eyes at that moment, every inch of him screaming hopelessness and hatred.  
  
Some time before dawn, he leaned over Sasuke's prone form. Even in sleep, Sasuke looked like he was in pain. His fingers twitched restlessly, and his jaw was tight. He tried to imagine letting Sasuke die, watching him waste away in agony.  
  
Then he imagined Sasuke crouched on the Hokage's tower, Sharingan spinning, bodies littered around him, Konoha in flames. He closed his eyes.  
  
“What are you doing?” Sasuke asked. He looked down and realized that Sasuke was awake..  
  
“Nothing,” Naruto said. He stared down at Sasuke's face, shadowy and sculpted in the evening light. Sasuke's hair blended in with the shadows, and his mouth looked very soft. Naruto leaned down, and kissed him.  
  
Sasuke didn't move, didn't even blink. “I didn't realize Sakura was still rejecting you,” he said coolly. “She defended you so strongly last time.”  
  
“Shut up,” Naruto murmured against his mouth. “You asshole, just shut up.”  
  
Sasuke lay still as Naruto explored his lips, cupped his jaw, tilted his head back. “I said I wanted to fight,” Sasuke breathed, “not fuck.” Naruto was pleased to hear his voice hitch.  
  
“Well you don't get a choice,” Naruto said fiercely. “I won't fight you like this.” He put two hands on Sasuke's shoulders and touched his tongue to Sasuke's throat. Sasuke tasted like desert salt and sweat, sickness and strength and Sasuke. He didn't realize how hard he was sucking until Sasuke's hand came up to push him away.  
  
Naruto caught it, and pinned it back down.  
  
“Naruto,” Sasuke said warningly, which Naruto patently ignored.  
  
“You're not dying,” Naruto said. “I won't let you.” He dug hard fingers into Sasuke's hips, and Sasuke tipped his head back, closing his eyes again. The oddly submissive pose snapped the last thread of his conscience, and he leaned down to put his mouth against Sasuke's stomach.  
  
He explored, Sasuke's hands resting lightly on his head. Sasuke twitched when Naruto's thumbs brushed over his nipples, he shifted when Naruto traced one rib with his tongue, and when Naruto settled his weight between Sasuke's thighs, Sasuke slid two hands over his shoulders.  
  
Naruto could feel an answering hardness against his stomach, and he thrust, testing. Sasuke curled a hand in his hair and yanked his face down. “This doesn't change anything,” he said breathlessly, and then his lips smashed into Naruto's and Naruto's mind went blank.  
  
The kiss was rough and messy and it stung with days worth of dehydration and chafing sand. Naruto sucked Sasuke's bottom lip between his teeth and bit, drawing blood. In retaliation, Sasuke yanked his hair so hard Naruto groaned. A second later Sasuke was arching up into him, face buried against his neck.  
  
Naruto could feel himself reaching the breaking point, and he dug his hands into Sasuke's back, desperate for friction. Sasuke's knees bruised his sides, and his nails left stinging trails across Naruto's back. He made a sound, so desperate and guttural that Naruto groaned. A deep thrust and he was coming, sticky warmth spattering the inside of his pants. Sasuke followed him just seconds later, arching upward with a curse.  
  
Naruto lay against Sasuke for long moments, panting and dizzy, trying to get his bearings. He felt the small tremors running through Sasuke's body, and he resisted the urge to kiss Sasuke again, to taste him more while he still had the chance.  
  
The fire was smoldering in its pit, the low light barely stretching outside of itself. Naruto rolled off onto the ground, sand sticking to sweat everywhere his skin touched.  
  
“Idiot,” Sasuke said faintly. “That was a stupid thing to do.”  
  
Naruto watched the ceiling. “I know,” he said.  
  
“This will only make it harder to fight me.”  
  
Naruto turned his head, and Sasuke was looking right at him, light flickering over his expectant face.  
  
“Sasuke,” he said, hearing the bitter twist to his own voice. “I don't think that's possible.”  
  
*****  
  
Naruto woke to the ground beside his head exploding. He rolled away from Sasuke's next blow, and the Chidori hit sand where Naruto's head had  _just_  been.  
  
“What the hell are you doing?” he shouted, but Sasuke was already gearing up for another strike. Naruto could see how flushed his cheeks were. Fever-flushed.  
  
“Let's end this now,” Sasuke said. His eyes shone hard and bright against the morning sun. “I'm sick of wasting time.”  
  
Naruto dodged a katon, barely, and then a kick to the shoulder sent him skidding back in the sand. Naruto drew his kunai.  
  
“I'm sorry, I didn't realize you had plans to keep after you murdered me,” Naruto snapped.  
  
“I have a day before this seal kills me,” Sasuke said roughly. “If I wait any longer, I won't be able to fight at all.”  
  
“You've already waited too long,” Naruto said in a low voice. “You're shaking.” He was, too. He had three shuriken tucked between the long fingers of his left hand, and even from ten feet away, Naruto could see his arm trembling.  
  
“Shut up,” Sasuke snarled.  
  
Naruto avoided the first two shuriken, but the third hit him directly in the shoulder. His right arm went numb. He could feel the adrenaline start to jump in his veins, his blood start to speed up. He clenched his teeth and ripped the metal from his shoulder.  
  
“I won't fight you,” he said calmly. “Not like this.”  
  
Sasuke looked down at him from his stance on a nearby rock, bare from the waist up, sword in his right hand. He looked as savage as Naruto had ever seen him, save those last moments at the Valley of the End, when they'd both lost all trappings of humanity for a short time. Incongruously, Naruto's eyes went to the purple smudge on Sasuke's neck, the bruise that his mouth had left.  
  
“I won't let you back do– ” Sasuke started. Naruto knocked him down before he could finish his sentence, and they both hit the ground enough to send sand flying. Naruto could feel the Kyuubi's chakra spinning inside him, encasing his body, controlled and powerful.  
  
Sasuke blinked up at him for a stunned moment. “You're not that fast,” he breathed. “How - ?”  
  
“If you want to know,” Naruto said, “you have to live and find out.” He slammed Sasuke's hand against the ground, and the sword went clattering. They stayed there, chest to chest, gaze to gaze, until Sasuke looked away.  
  
“Let me up,” he said. Naruto didn't move. “Get  _off_ ,” he said more forcefully and began to squirm. Naruto eased back warily.  
  
Sasuke started to rise, and Naruto braced himself for another round, but Sasuke only got to his hands and knees. He coughed once, clutching his stomach, and Naruto saw red spatter the ground.  
  
“Sasuke...”  
  
Sasuke leaned forward and vomited blood.  
  
*****  
  
Naruto had wanted Sasuke to talk; now, he talked. Eyes glazed, he talked to Madara as if he were there, to his parents, to Orochimaru. He swore at Danzou, already months dead, and begged Itachi for forgiveness. He said Naruto's name, over and over again in hoarse tones, and never anything else.  
  
Naruto bit his lip until it bled and tried to keep Sasuke's fever down with a damp cloth. It was difficult when there was heat rising off the rocks themselves. The black seal crept across his chest, up his neck and around his temples.  
  
“Fight me,” he whispered in one of his lucid moments, color leeched from his lips.  
  
“Idiot,” Naruto said, panicky. “Stop talking.”  
  
Sometime before twilight, Sasuke grabbed his wrist and looked up at him, Sharingan spinning. Naruto tensed, but it was too late. He felt himself falling, and then he was face to face with Sasuke, standing in the chamber of his mind where the Kyuubi's fiery chakra spun.  
  
“You did it,” Sasuke said, looking up. Even in his own illusion, his face was too pale. “You finally figured out how to control it.”  
  
“Of course.” Naruto tried to smile, but it was difficult. He could feel Sasuke fading in the weakness of the illusion. The walls were wavering.  
  
“I wanted to fight again,” Sasuke said. “I even took Itachi's eyes. I never thought...”  
  
“We'll fight,” Naruto choked out. “Just the two of us. After I figure out how to get rid of the seal.”  
  
Sasuke didn't answer him. He reached out and touched the white mass of chakra, drew some of it out. It dispersed under his touch.  
  
“You were always too reckless,” Sasuke said. “Madara wasn't the only one after the Kyuubi. If you're not careful, someone else will take it.”  
  
Naruto thought of Kabuto waiting out of sight, eyes unreadable behind his glasses.  
  
“I thought you didn't care,” Naruto said thickly.  
  
Sasuke's smile was a faint, fleeting thing. “I wanted to kill you,” he said. “I'd rather not give someone else the pleasure.”  
  
The room swirled around him and then the illusion collapsed. Naruto fell heavily on his hands and knees, shaking off the disorientation of the genjutsu. His cheeks were wet.  
  
Sasuke's eyes were closed, and his breathing was labored. Naruto shook him, but there was no response.  
  
*****  
  
“Kabuto, where are you?” Naruto shouted. The wind was kicking up, whistling across the mouth of their small shelter. The sand was like needles against his skin.  
  
“You called?”  
  
Naruto whipped around and Kabuto was there, stance casual. His eyes were a strange mix of malice and glee.  
  
“Okay,” Naruto said, breathing hard. “Okay, I'll do it.”  
  
Kabuto smiled.  
  
*****  
  
Naruto lay down next to Sasuke, trying to force his muscles to stay put. He couldn't stop picturing Gaara's body after the bijuu had been extracted, limp and twisted. Every instinct he had was telling him to fight, to escape.  
  
But Sasuke lay next to him, so still and lifeless that Naruto wanted to scream. He closed his eyes and focused on breathing.  _I'm sorry_ , he thought, to his parents, and to Sakura, and to Jiraiya and Tsunade and Iruka and everyone else he'd made hundreds of promises to. In the face of Sasuke's death, he couldn't make them matter any more.  
  
“Removing the seal will cause him to bleed out internally,” Kabuto explained, dipping his fingers into the bowl of dark ointment he'd set out. Its scent stung Naruto's nose. “ A portion of the Kyuubi's chakra will be channeled into him to heal the damage. The rest I'll take into myself and seal with Orochimaru.”  
  
“Whatever,” Naruto forced out. “Let's just get it over with.”  
  
Kabuto paused. “You probably won't survive this,” he said, almost apologetically. “But I hope you do, Naruto-kun. You're an extraordinary shinobi.”  
  
Naruto swallowed and focused on not throwing up.  
  
Kabuto drew a circle around them in the sand, then divided it. The shallow tracks immediately turned black. He made a series of hand signs that Naruto didn't recognize, too fast to memorize. Then he set both hands over Sasuke's seal and pressed.  
  
Sasuke convulsed, and Naruto jumped.  
  
“Don't move,” Kabuto said calmly. Sasuke's eyes rolled back into his head, and he moaned. The black swirls decorating his body began to writhe.  
  
“Why is he in pain?” Naruto said sharply.  
  
“I'm removing malignant chakra from his internal organs,” Kabuto said lightly. “Of course he's in pain.”  
  
Naruto could feel his own seal beginning to pulse. The chakra he'd worked so hard to master was rocking unsteadily. Kabuto reached over and slammed a hand down on his stomach.  
  
“What are you - ” Naruto started, and then pain ripped him open from the inside out. He screamed, clawing at his stomach, but Kabuto's chakra held him down mercilessly. Naruto felt the Kyuubi stir to life and roar inside of him, and then all his chakra was breaking free, spilling out of him. He thought he heard shouting, but he was beyond speaking, beyond fighting, beyond anything but enduring. He couldn't imagine how his mother had survived this agony. He felt his body arching without permission as Kabuto's hands drew his life out.  
  
 _Sasuke_ , he thought,  _I'm sorry_.  
  
And then, as suddenly as it began, it stopped. Naruto curled in on himself, panting. His vision was fuzzy, and he could hear the sounds of steel hitting steel above him. Pain sliced through the center of his stomach, but he couldn't tell if it had worked or not. Slowly, he closed his eyes and let the world fade out.  
  
*****  
  
The pain came back, in a dulled sort of reprise. There were hands pressing gently on his stomach, words being muttered above him. He thought he caught snatches of “moron” and “stupid” and “useless,” but he couldn't be sure. Someone lifted his head and poured water down his throat. Half of it dribbled down his shoulder.  
  
He opened his eyes a slit to see Sasuke, scowling down at him.  
  
“Did it work?” he rasped. “Or are we both dead?”  
  
“We're alive,” Sasuke said, “no thanks to your idiot plan.”  
  
But Naruto had stopped listening at  _alive_. He closed his eyes and went back to sleep.  
  
*  
  
The second time he woke, Sasuke was standing at the mouth of their small cave, looking out. He glanced back over his shoulder and Naruto met his steady gaze, forcing himself into a sitting position. Every inch of him hurt.  
  
“What did I say about being reckless?” Sasuke said.  
  
“Yeah, but you were delirious at the time,” Naruto said. “So I ignored you.” He rubbed his hands against his face, then pressed his forearm tight against his stomach. He felt like a hot poker had been shoved through his middle, but other than that, he felt like himself. The fox's chakra turned inside of him, bright and steady.  
  
“Where's Kabuto?” Naruto asked.  
  
Sasuke shrugged. “Healing somewhere, most likely. I broke both his arms.” There was a satisfied glint in Sasuke's eyes that Naruto felt echo in his own chest. “I guess he forgot how quickly I recover.”  
  
And Sasuke did look recovered. There was no sign of Madara's seal, and his face was its normal smooth blank.  
  
“Did you, uh, stop him?” Naruto asked lightly, because  _did you save me_  sounded too girly and was bound to make Sasuke get all stiff and uncomfortable.  
  
Sasuke raised an eyebrow. “You're alive, aren't you?”  
  
 _Barely_  Naruto thought, but he pulled himself to his feet, grimacing. Sasuke's face didn't change, but Naruto didn't miss the way his shoulders tensed.  
  
Naruto attempted a smile. “So I guess it's time to fight, then.” It was a bluff; his legs felt like water and his head was swimming, but everything was too quiet and uncertain between them.  
  
Sasuke regarded him for a moment, then looked away. “You're not ready. You need to recover.”  
  
“Sasuke,” Naruto took a step toward him, and Sasuke shoved him back, one hand pinning his shoulder to the wall.  
  
“Don't misunderstand,” he said, voice harsh. “I saved you because you're less of a threat to me than Kabuto. Not out of friendship.”  
  
Naruto wondered why his heart felt so light all of a sudden. “Is that why you didn't try and take the Kyuubi for yourself?”  
  
It took a long time for Sasuke to answer. When he finally did, his voice was low and steady. “When we fight,” he said. “we'll both be at our strongest. Nothing less.” He dropped his hand and turned away.  
  
Naruto watched him walk away, forcing down the urge to chase. He'd done it for so long, it was like a reflex now. But Sasuke had said  _when_. They'd meet again.  
  
“Hey Sasuke,” he called. Sasuke paused without turning around. Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “I don't suppose you, uh, know the way back to Konoha?”  
  
*****  
  
Naruto took his time packing his things. He caught another rat and roasted it, because he was actually starting to like the taste of desert meat, then spent hours watching the sun go down, waiting for the cooler evening air. He carved the Konoha symbol into the rock with his kunai and then, just because he was feeling sentimental, carved the Uchiha fan next to it.  
  
 _Go west until you hit Suna_ , Sasuke had said.  _Then ask the Kazekage for a map this time._  
  
His stomach still hurt, but he was in one piece, which was more than he'd expected. Except for the bit of chakra that had been used on Sasuke. At least the fox was good for something. He liked to think of his own chakra, healing Sasuke's wounds, mixing with Sasuke's own. He remembered the desperate feel of Sasuke's mouth, and shivered.  
  
The sun sank over the horizon, and the sand under his feet cooled. Naruto picked up his pack and headed west.


End file.
